Wealthy Chinese travelers prefer to stay at the Hyatt and Marriott chains of hotels, according to New York-based wealth research firm Luxury Institute.

It’s been a banner year for French chef Emmanuel Renaut. After earning his third star in the last Michelin guide, the chef of Flocons de Sel in eastern France has been voted chef of the year by his fellow colleagues.

Apple has been named as the UK’s coolest brand, taking first place from luxury car brand Aston Martin in the 2012 CoolBrands rankings.

In fact, the exclusive and much idolized carmaker, which has held the top spot in the annual CoolBrands list for six of the past seven years, was beaten not just by Apple in first place, but also by YouTube, which moved up into second place.

What does a $100,000 stove look like? Swedish appliance maker Electrolux’s Molteni range cooker comes with as many amenities an amateur chef could ever want, need or dream of — including a vacuum packer, fryer and even a food mixer.

Ibis hotels will select a happy few to test a new kind of bedding connected via 80 sensors to a robot. The sensors will capture the guests’ sleep data to turn it into a work of art.

Rolls Royce Motor Cars will launch a special collection of Art Deco-inspired cars at the 2012 Paris Auto Show.